Ahmed Muhammad Sanusi, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Commissioner of Police, has cautioned Nigerians against permitting police to inspect their cell phones arbitrarily.

During a meeting with young people in Abuja, Sanusi stated that police officers are not legally permitted to examine civilians’ phones at random. He clarified that the direction was required because of certain officers’ wrongdoing.

In addition to encouraging victims of harassment, extortion, or other wrongdoing to report such events to the closest police station or through the FCT Police Command’s complaint channels, he asked citizens to respectfully decline any illegal request to inspect their phones.

“Don’t allow any police officers to search your phone and we’re saying this due to the abuse and extortive tendencies of some of our officers.

“It has been instructed that nobody should search any phone, especially when you just arrest somebody on the road and you start searching the person’s phone, suspecting that he is an internet fraudster.

This does not negate the fact that phones are also being used to commit crime. But of course, before such a thing can happen, the person must have committed the crime, must have been properly arrested and brought to the station, then when trying to uncover some evidence, you can search to see whether the phone or other items are being used to perpetuate the crime.

“But for you to just stop anybody on the road and say bring your phone, let me search, is not legal.

“If any policeman stops you on the road, according to the instructions of the Inspector-General of Police, which we are bound to obey to the last of it, don’t open your phone, resist and ask other people to help you call the police. You will see our men there,” he said.